Court of Appeals: applicant is too smart to be a cop

[bbgun]

Court OKs Barring High IQs for Cops

N E W L O N D O N, Conn., Sept. 8

A man whose bid to become a police officer was rejected after he scored too high on an intelligence test has lost an appeal in his federal lawsuit against the city.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York upheld a lower court’s decision that the city did not discriminate against Robert Jordan because the same standards were applied to everyone who took the test.

“This kind of puts an official face on discrimination in America against people of a certain class,” Jordan said today from his Waterford home. “I maintain you have no more control over your basic intelligence than your eye color or your gender or anything else.”

He said he does not plan to take any further legal action.

Jordan, a 49-year-old college graduate, took the exam in 1996 and scored 33 points, the equivalent of an IQ of 125. But New London police interviewed only candidates who scored 20 to 27, on the theory that those who scored too high could get bored with police work and leave soon after undergoing costly training.

Most Cops Just Above Normal The average score nationally for police officers is 21 to 22, the equivalent of an IQ of 104, or just a little above average.

more:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=95836&page=1#.TwDaGfLhee1

[Sam I Am]

No wonder so many crime cases go unsolved until scientist (ie, people with higher IQs) work on the cases.

[bbgun]

No wonder so many crime cases go unsolved until scientist (ie, people with higher IQs) work on the cases.

I've never been too smart for any job.

[big dog cowboy]

Interesting. They don't want to hire the smart guys because they don't want a lot of turnover. Hmmmmmm.

[bbgun]

Interesting. They don't want to hire the smart guys because they don't want a lot of turnover. Hmmmmmm.

I do see a problem, which is that detectives should be smart (like 125 IQ). Since you can't become a detective until after you've worked as a patrol officer, that particular police department is depriving itself of future competent detectives.

[dargonking999]

I do see a problem, which is that detectives should be smart (like 125 IQ). Since you can't become a detective until after you've worked as a patrol officer, that particular police department is depriving itself of future competent detectives.

but in order for you to become detective you have to be patient enough to gain the experience. and most people of High IQ will move on once they feel that there are no more challenges, or they get "bored" and with the amount of money it takes to train and pop out these patrol officers, you can't afford to lose them after a year or two because they don't want to wait to become detective. It's stupid but smart.

[casmith07]

but in order for you to become detective you have to be patient enough to gain the experience. and most people of High IQ will move on once they feel that there are no more challenges, or they get "bored" and with the amount of money it takes to train and pop out these patrol officers, you can't afford to lose them after a year or two because they don't want to wait to become detective. It's stupid but smart.

Solution is to establish a Detective's School/training for those members that might be better suited as detectives and hire direct.

[dargonking999]

Solution is to establish a Detective's School/training for those members that might be better suited as detectives and hire direct.

Yea but that would create more cost that the city might not be able to pay for. As a detective really how much money can you generate for the city by closing high profile murder cases? ( real question I really don't know)

[Sam I Am]

Solution is to establish a Detective's School/training for those members that might be better suited as detectives and hire direct.

Yeah. Something like if they have a higher IQ and a degree send them directly to something like the Military's OCS / OTS except a detective school.

[jnday]

I was tested when I was younger for IQ score . Just curious , does IQ scores change with age ?

[Sam I Am]

I was tested when I was younger for IQ score . Just curious , does IQ scores change with age ?

IQ is a measurement of several things. spatial, mathematical, language, memory. So yes age can be a factor, but mostly in children prior to adulthood. Obviously, education of general subjects is important as the questions generally relate to it. Though, it isn't a test of general education as much as cognitive abilities.

That said, you can do things to help train your brain to operate more cognitively. (brain games)

[burmafrd]

Perfect example of what is wrong in this world. Telling someone that they are too smart for this job.

Telling people "We do not want smart policemen."

Moronic stupidity of the highest order. And for a JUDGE to say this.

NANNY STATE BS.

[Temo]

Perfect example of what is wrong in this world. Telling someone that they are too smart for this job.

Telling people "We do not want smart policemen."

Moronic stupidity of the highest order. And for a JUDGE to say this.

NANNY STATE BS.

Well the Judge is simply saying it's not discrimination. He's saying that because they're allowed to not hire people who score too low, they're also allowed to not hire people who score too high, as it's the same reasoning.